Category: Motherhood

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Our Spinkie Story

RhizaLeave a comment

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Spinkie dolls

Above photographs were taken in 2016.

Many would have discovered Spinkie through their magical and inspiring Instagram presence. But for us, discovering Spinkie was more, shall I say, random (or fate!)

It was the year 2012. I was a new mom, on a quest to find our first Christmas gifts for our then barely 2-month old twin babies when I happened upon Spinkie’s stuffed bunnies in a little baby shop along E. Rodriguez Avenue.

I remember wanting to give our babies something they would love to carry around wherever we go, and something that would grow with them through the years.

We thought of getting them soft dolls, and I know this sounds strange but we were specific about finding stuffed bunnies. Nope, not teddy bears, not baby dolls, and not any kind of stuffed animals. We wanted to find bunnies.

And that was a challenge because, while there were plenty of plush bunnies everywhere, we needed something that’s safe for newborns.

So back to that day in 2012, on a random shelf at some unexpected shop in the middle of nowhere, we found the perfect stuffed bunnies for our babies. They’re called “Bitbit the Rabbit“, and they’re just the right size and style we were looking for.

Dawn & Rain’s first Christmas <3

Spinkie’s Bitbit the Rabbit

Quickly looking it up online, I found that these plush bunnies are—

  • made with non-allergenic and dustmite-proof materials,
  • with soft dot minky texture that’s safe for biting and snuggling,
  • designed for sensory development, teething, and sleep assistance,
  • and triple-stitched for utmost durability and baby safety

I also learned that, although the brand was initially established in Singapore, it’s proudly Filipino-made and created by our very own Mutya Laxa-Buensuceso. These details, and the fact that the bunnies are obviously so adorable, won me for life.

And that’s the story of how these Bitbit the Rabbit toys ended up under the tree on our daughters’ first Christmas, and ultimately how Spinkie became a part of our life.

Perhaps the twins won’t remember that first Christmas morning the way we would but just as we hoped for, Dawn and Rain literally grew up with these Spinkie dolls like they’re part of the family.

If you browse through our old photographs, you’d spot these bunnies here and there—each one attached to a memory, big and small.

For the first 3 years of their life, we looooved the classic Bitbit the Rabbit in Flamingo Pink. This color may be phased out already though, but this light pink one is very close.

They love the bunnies so much that, at one point, I had to quietly replace their old worn-out Bitbits—poor overworked little playthings, lol—without them knowing. And another time I had to repurchase the same Bitbit to replace one we happened to lose on a trip.

The girls had these bunnies tagging along literally everywhere. From bedtime to playtime, from cuddles to trips.

So when they turned 3 years old, we got them Bitbits again for Christmas. The bigger ones, this time.

I mean, it worked so well the first time, might as well do it again, right? ;)

Spinkie Christmas gift

From here on out, their collection of Spinkie dolls just keeps growing and growing.

Needless to say, I naturally gravitate to Spinkie whenever I’m looking for special gifts to buy the girls! (To be honest, it feels like buying gifts for myself too!)

And I love that I never have to second-guess if they will love them or not.

In many milestones of our life as a family, there’s a little Spinkie story somewhere.

So much that, as we watch our daughters grow, it feels like watching Spinkie grow as a brand too.

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Today Spinkie has added more bunnies in their Bitbit the Rabbit line (the Princess Bunnies are Dawn and Rain’s current favorites), plus more whimsical toys to choose from.

Mutya, being a mother herself, knows just how important it is to create tasteful and timeless pieces that parents and children alike will love, no matter the age.

They’ve since introduced decors that make for magical spaces, and naturally, we also have this Sheer Canopy (Mist) draped on top of the twin’s bed.

And recently, as Spinkie celebrated its 9th year, they also introduced their very own clothing line, Spinkiewear, as well as more additions to their collection of decors and toys. Which I’ll talk more about in the next post.

I can gush about Spinkie for days!

Not only because I genuinely love their products (for our daughters and for myself haha), but also because the story behind this much loved, globally known, and humbly Filipino-made brand is just truly inspiring!

Behind every piece of thoughtfully created decor and toy is a group of moms who work hard with their hearts on their sleeves, and have their own children’s best interests in mind. As a result, we get to support, benefit from, and enjoy their labor of love too. So much magic and goodness from all sides!

Congratulations, Mutya and Team, for a great run so far! I’m excited to see what’s more in store for you guys, and for all of us Spinkie lovers around the world.

Shop Dawn & Rain’s Current Spinkie Doll Collection

Just click the images and it will take you to their corresponding product pages.

Shop More Spinkie Decors and Toys Here

About Spinkie

Over the past 3 years, Spinkie has built a homegrown brand that was able to resonate with a global audience.

Most people online think of Spinkie as an Australian or British brand but they are, in fact, a global brand that has its roots in the Philippines. Spinkie is proud to support a growing community of Filipino Moms who lovingly sew its products and an international community of Moms who sell their products in their own countries, each one of them caring for their children the way they desire as they build their own careers at the same time.

Today, Spinkie is in 21 counties with over 65 stockists globally, upholding its vision to make magical spaces that aim to create more meaningful memories for both parents and kids.

Get Daily Dose of Spinkie Inspiration

Instagram | Facebook | Website

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Part 2

Magical Spaces with Spinkie

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Part 3

Dawn and Rain Turns 7

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Full disclosure: This series of essays is written for Spinkie. We’ve been happy Spinkie customers since 2012 and therefore personally purchased and collected many Spinkie products through the years. All opinions are my own and most photos in this blog, unless otherwise stated, are also ours. :)

Motherhood in the Time of Digital

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Photos by Little Heartbeat Photography

This digital age has made motherhood a lot easier and a lot harder at the same time, don’t you think? There are so much content and opinion about how motherhood should be done and what it takes to be a good mom. And while I love how technology has opened up new ways for us to make more informed choices for our kids, it can also make us easily fall into the pit of comparison and doubt any given day—

Am I doing it right? Am I doing enough? Should I have done it that way? Should I have done more?

For more than a decade Dove has invested so much into campaigns that empower women around the world to embrace their uniqueness, stop chasing perfect, and start being real. And recently they extended this same message to mothers through Baby Dove.

Real talk: As if “mommy guilt” is not enough, no one experiences more judgment for their choices than us mothers. There’s pressure to be perfect everywhere we turn, to do this and that, or you’ll be labeled as this and that, or judged for your choices like you didn’t pour your heart and soul and tears over making those choices enough. And this happens both online and offline—from relatives to church friends to college acquaintances to random internet strangers.

As a side note, this is one of the reasons why, for a long time, I quit blogging about motherhood. I find topics surrounding motherhood feel like politics. There are too many schools of thought and I came to a point where I didn’t have the energy anymore to explain the choices we make for our kids.

As a mother myself, I often find myself wishing that advertising would lessen the blow and not add to the struggle anymore. More so, I wish that mothers would not add to the struggle anymore too. After all, we’re the ones who should truly understand each other more than anyone, right? :)

And so when I was given the opportunity to take part in the Baby Dove campaign, knowing what the brand stands for, I just had to say yes.

There was truly something empowering about mothers united in their differences and collectively making a positive impact on the world.

Baby Dove’s #RealMoms Campaign

Since 2017 when Baby Dove first launched the #RealMoms campaign, moms from everywhere showed how a new generation of women are learning to tune out the noise and trust what they believe is best for their kids, while also cheering on other moms in their own journey.

I’ve always quietly cheered on Dove for choosing to spend their advertising money on campaigns that aim to empower and unite women (remember this?), and I truly believe we need more brands to choose better.

Behind the scenes

As a side story, although it was a no-brainer for me to say yes to this Baby Dove campaign, I was a little nervous coming to the shoot, worried whether or not the girls would cooperate.

I’m still laughing at the irony of the thought. After all, this is exactly what the campaign was about. The real-ness of motherhood. The “family photos will have one kid (or two) not in the mood to take a photo” kind of real.

The above photos were taken by Baby Dove’s official photographers but here are some behind-the-scenes captured with our own camera.

Baby Dove Real Moms Campaign

A shoutout to my daughters for keeping it real, haha. And to my husband who’s been my ever-supportive and ever loving partner in this journey of motherhood.

Lastly, thank you Baby Dove team and Little Heartbeat Photography for capturing these special Mother’s Day moments for me and our kids, and for empowering moms like me to get out of our comfort zone and make an impact beyond the four corners of our home. Thank you.

Full Disclosure: This is an account of our experience taking part in the Baby Dove #RealMoms campaign. All opinions are my own. Read my full disclosure policy here.

How to Quit Your Job and Work from Home

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This post may contain affiliate links. Read my disclosure policy here.

I get asked this question all the time, and understandably so. These days, working from home is no longer an exception to the rule but a realistic and viable option, you just have to know where to find opportunities and how to set yourself up for it.

If you’re thinking about quitting your office-based job and starting a location-independent career, there are several pathways that you can pursue:

1. Start your own business

This option is the riskiest one and usually requires longer financial planning and preparation. You might want to try out your business idea as a side-hustle first to see if it will take off.

You also want to have at least 6-months worth of salary saved up before taking the leap because you can go on for months of hard work without seeing any profit.

Still, given the risks, this option is the one where you can really be your own boss and work at your own terms.

Be a full-time blogger

Let’s consider this one a subset of starting a business. A blog, after all, should be treated as a business if you want it to replace your full-time income.

Like a business, there’s a lot of work to be done before you start seeing profit, especially if your blog is new. If your goal is to become a full-time blogger, check out some of my recent posts about this topic:

How to Start a Blog the Right Way: A Step by Step Guide

Why You Should Consider Starting a Blog Now More than Ever

2. Offer your services as a freelancer

There’s a lot of freedom and flexibility when you’re offering services as a freelancer, but there are also limits in terms of calling the shots and being your own boss.

As a freelancer, you’re somehow at the mercy of your clients, which means you’re technically working for multiple bosses at a time. Income may be irregular, but if you work double-time, you can possibly earn double too.

3. Get a remote job

If you’re not keen to start a business or offer freelance services, applying for a remote job is an increasingly popular option.

Some of the most common remote jobs are Virtual Assistants, Graphic Designers, Digital Marketers, Social Media Managers, Customer Support Specialists—basically anything that can be done in the “cloud”.

A remote job is something you can aim for without putting too much risk on your career or savings. You’ll still likely be bound by a 9-5 schedule and a fixed rate, which is desirable if you’re the type who likes the comfort of a routine and the security of a monthly salary.

My husband and I experienced doing all of the above in the past decade, and today I’d like to share important lessons from our own journey.

My story: How I established a career I love, from home

I was 25 when I first left my corporate job to grab an opportunity to work remotely.

I loved the corporate job I gave up, by the way, but I loved the idea of exploring the unknown more. Especially at that time when I was young and had some space in my life to test the waters.

I had big dreams to travel and to try out entrepreneurship—two things I couldn’t do as much as I wanted because of the demands of my office-based work. It took a lot of courage to leave behind a secured job and a promising corporate path but there’s no denying the restlessness that was building up in my heart.

Fun fact: It was actually what my former boss said that inspired me to register this domain name 9 years ago. On that day I told him I was filing my resignation, he said (and I remember that moment quite vividly), “I don’t want to get in the way of chasing dreams so, okay.”

I thanked him, filed my 30-day notice, said goodbye to that chapter of my life, and never looked back. Hence the beginning of my location-independent career.

(Also the beginning of Chasingdreams.net.)

Throwback to the time I lived in New York City for two months where I took my remote job with me.

So here’s another thing about me: I LOVE working, you guys. I do miss the 9-to-5 grind, all the brainstorming sessions, the random pizza parties, picking my boss’s brain, meeting deadlines. Call me weird but I even enjoyed getting dressed in pin-striped slacks, putting on my heels, and stepping into my office cubicle.

In fact, as I said before, I sometimes feel like I’m more confident at having a career than I am being a mother!

So even as I have experienced the freedom and benefits of working remotely, the thought of going back to corporate life was not far from my mind.

Two years after I took that remote job—back home from traveling and getting hitched *cough*—I knew that my husband and I were going to settle down in Manila for a while so I found myself in an office cubicle again.

This second attempt at an office-based job didn’t last long. After about a year re-joining the corporate workforce, I birthed twins and had to take an indefinite maternity break.

Life was never the same since. Suddenly, landing a remote job is not anymore an option but a necessity.

I needed a job I could do in front of our twins’ crib. Something I could do without having to change out of my pajamas in the morning (because I probably didn’t sleep the night before) and in between breastfeeding twins.

Good thing for me, because of my digital marketing background (which is a big thing when finding remote work), it didn’t take a while to find a startup company who was willing to take me in even with my unique circumstances.

Surely God had it all planned out from the beginning.

And the plot thickens. On my husband’s last year at nursing school, he signed up for a remote job himself. He applied for a Virtual Assistant position and got the role easily, even though he didn’t have any previous experience as a VA.

PRO TIP: You don’t need years of experience to start applying for remote jobs. ;)

For about a year, both my husband and I would work side-by-side on our dining table, our daughters’ playpen within arms reach.

And while all of these were happening, we also started a few small businesses (a story for another time) and launched passion projects.

I know. We’ve been soooo busy! :)

But looking back, we know we’re only able to do all of these because we didn’t have to leave home, which gave us about 3-4 extra hours we didn’t have to spend on commute or traffic.

Eventually, when my husband completed his nursing licensure, he let go of his remote job to practice nursing.

As for me, this year would be my 5th year (7th, if you count those pre-motherhood years) working remotely and I wouldn’t have it any other way.

As a mother, nothing beats knowing I could help provide for and raise my family, without sacrificing this career that I happen to love.

Surely when the kids are older, busy with school and their own sets of friends, I’d like very much to keep practicing my profession. And having a home-based job that allows me to keep up with the trends and continue gaining experience offers so many immediate and long-term benefits.

Benefits of working from home

As I already mentioned, having a remote job allowed me to travel and take my work with me. When I was younger, that opportunity was more than anything I could have hoped for or imagined.

As a mother, I’m grateful that I can do my job without missing out on my children’s growth. Although of course, you’d need a lot of help (like a babysitter or a grandmother—thanks, Mom!—who looks after your kids while you work), there’s nothing compared to being just in the next room from where your kids are playing or taking a nap.

Consider all the hours you would have wasted on traffic and commute—convert those extra hours to work on a side-hustle, hone your skills, or focus on self-care.

Count all the expenses you would have spent on fast food, work clothes, and transportation—convert that extra money to invest in a creative business or a family trip.

Pin for later

 

Transitioning from an office-based job to a work-at-home lifestyle may be a bit of a process, but totally doable. The first thing to do is to consider which work-at-home situation you want to pursue. Do you want to pursue a business, become a freelancer, or apply for a remote job? 

How to transition to a work-from-home lifestyle

Preparations vary depending on the path you want to take, but here are some general tips that are applicable across the board:

1. Get up to speed with the trends and best practices

You don’t have to forge your own path or reinvent the wheel so to speak. Working from home is not a new discovery, thousands of people are already doing it successfully. You just have to take it from them and learn from their successes and mistakes.

There are many free resources available online, and if you’re the type who likes to dig into Google and find the hidden gems, then by all means! As a fair warning, however, you will encounter numerous fake job postings and scams online so you want to be very careful about your search.

This is why I would also recommend investing in premium resources when you can. There’s so much ground to cover, to be honest! 9 years ago I had to navigate this space without that much help!

This Work from Home Bundle, is a limited edition toolkit that includes work-at-home resources and ebooks that will help prepare you for that work-at-home lifestyle.

I personally bought the bundle for myself even though I’ve been working remotely for 7 years. I find that continuous education is necessary to stay creative and inspired.

Buy the Ultimate Work at Home Super Bundle
Sale period is over. Sign up to be notified.

2. Get obsessed with growing your skillset!

Work-at-home opportunities are largely dependent on technology and the internet. Naturally so, since it is through the internet that we’re able to work remotely.

That said, whether you want to apply for a remote job, start your own online business, or advance your career, you need to keep on gaining new creative and technical skills to complement your existing ones.

Say, if you’re a writer, you can learn other forms of content creation skills like photography, graphic design or social media.

If you’re a graphic designer, you might want to add website design and development to your skillset.

If you’re a website developer, you’d want to learn new programming languages, analytics, or user experience.

If you’re a customer support expert, you might want to consider learning virtual assistance or project management too.

And so on.

3. Launch a blog or a website

A website is a necessity, whether you’re selling products, offering your services, or applying for a remote job. Having an updated and a healthy online presence is always a good way to attract buyers, partners, or employers.

For the past 7 years, my job comes with the occasional responsibility of scouting and hiring writers and digital marketing professionals. Guess what’s the first thing I look for when I have a pile of CVs on my desk?

Yep. I check if the applicants have blogs.

For me, more often than not, a blog speaks louder than a CV.

One time I hired a travel blogger for a Content Strategist position. Countless times, I’ve hired mommy bloggers to do freelance writing for a wide range of blog topics and niches.

I, myself, use my website as a portfolio—my best case study. Every now and then when a potential client or employer asks me to show sample work, I only have to send them a link to this website. #hacks ;)

Regardless of the industry, a blog is a way for employers to assess not only your thought leadership and communication skills, but also your discipline, creativity, and personality. Believe it or not, these come handy when deciding which candidate is the best one for a position.

There’s just so much to cover about this topic, but I’ll cut this here.

If you want to ask me anything, hit me up with your questions in the comments below or subscribe to my mailing list to get updates.

Buy the Ultimate Work at Home Super Bundle – Until June 30 only!

Check out the tools that I use to run my online businesses

Start Your Blog Today, Here’s my Step-by-Step Guide

Why We Love Moana

Rhiza1 Comment

Why we love Moana

Why we love Moana

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Why we love Moana

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Why we love Moana

Not sure who loves Moana more, me or my daughters.

As someone who grew up with my favorite Disney princesses, I’m glad that Disney continues to craft interesting and culturally specific characters that kids these days can enjoy and learn from!

Disney’s fairy tale formula has evolved a lot since the Sleeping Beauty era. And yet somehow, they’re able to preserve everything we love about Disney animated films—the timeless storytelling, the songs we love singing along to for years to come, the humor, the moral lessons, and (my favorite) the fact that they don’t water down the importance of family in the chase of one’s dreams.

Moana: A Homecoming Celebration, Disneyland Hongkong

Raising daughters, I’m always appreciative of fun ways to introduce these ever-important values to Dawn and Rain.

I mean, little girls are complex creatures, you guys! Haha. >.<

Seriously though, to raise them well in this time where self-image and equality and diversity (among other things) are on the spotlight, the role of the family in their formative years is not to be taken lightly.

And it sure does come handy when a relatable and likable animated character such as Moana is created to embody these family-centric values we wish to impart to our daughters.

Moana is not your ordinary Disney princess.

She’s brave and unafraid of the unknown. Her family raised her well, so when it was time for her to leave her safe and warm comfort zone, she was ready to go out there to courageously fulfill what she was raised to do.

She didn’t let setbacks and failures stop her from trying again until she made it. She had to face a lot of challenges but she pushed herself to keep trying, with her family as her guide and inspiration.

Everything that Moana was is because of her family’s influence on her—and her love for them.

She didn’t need a prince charming to have a complete and inspiring story. I can already imagine my husband using this argument when it’s time to talk about crushes and boyfriends with our daughters, haha! Unlike other fairy tales, this one did not lack anything by not having a prince charming. The only love story here was the love she had for her family and her people.

She loved and respected her family, even when she had to go against her parent’s wishes at some point. For (sons and) daughters, Moana showed all of us how to “break” rules and expectations with love and respect. For parents of young kids, Moana’s story reminds us to love and support our children in whatever skills, calling, and dreams they have now and in the future.

I know Dawn and Rain will have to blaze their own trails someday (someday okay, kids? Not yet okay??), so I’m reminding myself to trust in how we’ve raised them to be independent and courageous enough to make the right choices.

Wellllll that escalated so quickly. O.O

So before this gets more intense and I start #uglycrying my way through the rest of this post, haha, let’s end this one in a fun note, shall we??

The reason why we’re talking about Moana now is because a new Moana live show is coming to Disneyland Hongkong, and we’re so excited to be sharing the news with y’all!

Read on some highlights of the press release below:

Moana: A Homecoming Celebration, Disneyland Hongkong

“Moana: A Homecoming Celebration” at Hongkong Disneyland

This special live show is part of Hongkong Disneyland Resorts’ Carnivale of Stars, and is the first attraction at the resort’s ongoing multi-year expansion.

Moana invites families and kids to join her 20-minute live show rich with inspirational music, dance, puppetry and immersive storytelling.. and then meet her for photos and hugs later. You can also buy souvenir Moana food and beverage, dolls and merch like the ones Dawn and Rain are holding in these photos.

Catch “Moana: A Homecoming Celebration” this summer at the Hongkong Disneyland Resort! For more details, check out this website here. ;)

Oh, and check out also this fun vlog of Dawn and Rain with their Moana and Pua dolls!

We just launched a Youtube channel for Dawn and Rain, and since they love their Moana dolls so much we thought to feature it for their first video. :) Still getting the hang of this thing but go check it out and subscribe!

And watch to the end to see the premiere of Moana: A Homecoming Celebration ;)

This story is written for HK Disneyland Resorts’ Carnivale of Stars. Read my full disclosure policy here.

You’ll Always Be Our Babies

Rhiza1 Comment

“You’re my baby,” I would say.
“I’m not a baby anymore, I’m a big girl,” Rain would reply.
“But you’re my baby,” I’d repeat, part joking, part serious like ‘I don’t care what you say, buddy, you’re mine!’
“No, no, Mommy, I’m not! I’m a big girl. See, I’m 5,” she would insist, raising her hand up and showing all of her 5 little fingers.
“Mommy, you have to listen to Rainy,” Dawn would chime in, taking her sister’s side.

There are two ways this conversation can go.

One, I’d ask them to pretend they’re still babies, and if they say yes, I’d tickle them and kiss them and carry them like babies and tickle them some more. “Just pretend, okay?” Rain would confirm, and I’d reply with a quick “ok, ok!”

Two, I’d agree with them and affirm that yes, they are indeed big girls now. (Music to Rain’s ears, by the way.)

The truth is, while the four of us enjoy teasing and disagreeing with each other (it’s one of our favorite pasttimes), I sometimes feel like the twins are not joking too. They really want to be treated as big girls na, to act like it, to be called such.

And don’t we all, have these moments growing up?

It’s an interesting phase. Also, it’s humbling, crazy, intense, entertaining, beautiful, tiring, stretching—all at the same time!

And just like my babies (who I’m going to refer to as “my babies” for the rest of this post because I say so, hah!), every day I can feel in my bones that years—and growth—are being added to my life too.

Note to self: Try to be more conscious about not calling them “babies” as much, even though I know deep inside they’ll always be mine.

+ + +

Since we’re in the subject of growing up, these two are literally outgrowing everything so fast.

Clothes, toys, TV shows, songs, books, even places. That playground in the mall they labeled as the “best place ever” just last month? Yep. Not anymore.

Sometimes I catch myself holding on to things a little too tightly. Like that dress they loved to wear when they were 2 years old which now falls about 5 inches above the knees; or that worn out baby blanket that held so much memories.

There’s a box of toys they don’t play with anymore, a pink doll house we got them for Christmas that they already want to trade for a bigger one, a plushie (or two) gathering dusts under the bed. 

I know we need to let them go at some point but I thought, maybe, if I keep them a little longer, time will slow down a little bit too.  (Or fine, I’m just a busy mom who doesn’t want to deal with the wrath of two feisty 5-year old girls just yet.)

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Excuse the puffy eyes. We took these photos in the morning and they.. (hashtag) wokeuplikethis.

+ + +

Few weeks ago we received a crate of goodies from Johnson & Johnson and the smiles on the girls’ faces were priceless.

They’re familiar with every item in the crate because they literally grew up with these J&J products—always included in the grocery list, present on the bedside table, stashed in the side pockets of their diaper bag.

From the time they were babies until now, each product represents a season, a favorite time of day, a treasured memory.

Like the sweet scent of baby lotion that reminds us of co-sleeping and bedtime cuddles. The handy dandy pack of baby wipes that takes us back to those diaper days. The bottle of baby shampoo that makes them want to dive into a tub of bubbles. The baby powder we still carry in our purses 20 years later.

Time flies, babies grow, and kids outgrow stuff, but some things do grow with us.

Thank you, Johnson & Johnson, for being one with the village and helping us give our babies only the best—from then til now.

This story was written for Johnson & Johnson. Read my full disclosure policy here.

New York, oh New York

Rhiza2 Comments

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I heaved a sign of relief when our plane landed at JFK after 23 looong hours of travel from Manila to New York. Finally! It’s our first time back in NYC in 5 years, first time to go there as a family, first long flight with the twins.

As we unbuckled the girls off their seats and prepared to step out of the plane, one of the girls, Rain, happily exclaimed, “We’re home Mommy, let’s go!”

The truth is, if you told me 5 years ago that I would be calling New York “home” in this lifetime, I would have laughed in your face and dismissed the idea outright. To me, New York has always been a mysterious city, and sure, one of my favorite cities in the world. It held some of my greatest memories, marked important milestones of my life and our story, and hey, I sure would love to keep coming back! But to call it “home” was, at one point, the farthest thing from my mind.

Nope, not New York City.

But something shifted somewhere, and New York has, somehow, become the very thing in my life I never thought it would or could be: home.

Maybe because I found love in this strange city and we all know how love can make anyone feel grounded. Or maybe because I have learned to see “home” in a whole new light.

Maybe the fact that I didn’t really want this to begin with, that makes being in New York feel.. right. After all, I have known God to work exactly this way. He has a knack for changing hearts and orchestrating circumstances that take us right where He wants and needs us to be, even if it means parting oceans with a rod and defeating giants with a sling.

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It’s been over a month since we landed in New York City and now we’re back in Manila. While the twins weren’t exactly as enthusiastic last week when our plane landed at NAIA Terminal 1 as when we landed at JFK (can’t blame them, it was a long trip and the humid Manila weather wasn’t all that welcoming either), we were just happy to have successfully endured another long flight, to have gained new memories, milestones and answers, and to have spent good quality time with our friends and family.

But most of all I’m grateful that home is not confined to a place, that we can bloom where we’re planted, and the grass is greener where the Lord places us.

He never makes mistakes, nope. And when we trust in that truth, we experience not only the realization of our (personal) dreams but also the blessings of being right in the center of His great, massive, Kingdom-building plan.

I’m still trying to process everything, sifting through photographs, unpacking suitcases, catching up on work and blog posts, making mental notes of everything God has taught us in the past two months. In my mind I’ve already written a book, really!

Hmm. It’s good to be back.

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New York 2015, it’s a wrap